Allianz Asset Management GmbH Acquires 26,083 Shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. $BR

Allianz Asset Management GmbH increased its holdings in Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR) by 77.2% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 59,863 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 26,083 shares during the period. Allianz Asset Management GmbH’s holdings in Broadridge Financial Solutions were worth $14,549,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 3.1% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,733,147 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,572,199,000 after acquiring an additional 438,381 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 2.4% during the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,689,607 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $409,662,000 after acquiring an additional 39,846 shares during the period. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. boosted its holdings in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 3.4% during the first quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 1,168,351 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $283,278,000 after acquiring an additional 38,527 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its holdings in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 3.2% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,076,761 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $261,071,000 after acquiring an additional 33,635 shares during the period. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 577.9% during the first quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,035,938 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $251,513,000 after acquiring an additional 883,125 shares during the period. 90.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Timothy C. Gokey sold 84,571 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $259.53, for a total value of $21,948,711.63. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 165,634 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $42,986,992.02. This represents a 33.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, President Christopher John Perry sold 7,036 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $262.72, for a total transaction of $1,848,497.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the president directly owned 48,813 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,824,151.36. This trade represents a 12.60% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 147,532 shares of company stock valued at $38,417,208 in the last three months. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of BR opened at $230.74 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $246.23 and a 200-day simple moving average of $242.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.54 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 0.98. Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. has a 52 week low of $208.20 and a 52 week high of $271.91.

Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 3rd. The business services provider reported $0.73 EPS for the quarter. Broadridge Financial Solutions had a net margin of 12.19% and a return on equity of 42.72%. The business had revenue of $1.05 billion during the quarter. On average, equities research analysts expect that Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. will post 8.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, September 11th were given a $0.975 dividend. This represents a $3.90 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. This is a boost from Broadridge Financial Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.88. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 11th. Broadridge Financial Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 55.01%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on BR shares. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from $222.00 to $261.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Needham & Company LLC upped their price target on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from $300.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, October 4th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from $250.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $261.50.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Company Profile

Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc provides investor communications and technology-driven solutions for the financial services industry. The company's Investor Communication Solutions segment processes and distributes proxy materials to investors in equity securities and mutual funds, as well as facilitates related vote processing services; and distributes regulatory reports, class action, and corporate action/reorganization event information, as well as tax reporting solutions.